Have comments gone too far? New Haven newspaper says 'yes'

If you think recent online comments on the Star-Exponent website and Facebook page are approaching the brink, you may be interested in the story of the New Haven (Conn.) Independent.

Earlier this month, the Independent suspended comments indefinitely after one particularly egregious post made it through the staff-monitored filter. In explaining the decision, founder Paul Bass laid out a case that could easily apply to our own local forums:

“Is this the long-awaited new dawn of democracy and accountability we thought we were helping to help spark ... [or] are we contributing to the reflexively cynical, hate-filled discourse that has polluted American civic life? Are we reviving the civic square? Or managing a sewer with toxic streams that demoralize anyone who dares to take part in government or citizen activism?

“Instead of sparking people to get involved and consider new ideas and talk to each other across boundaries, the discussion has too often devolved into a yell fest. Or a continual put-down party. It has discouraged people from taking part. And that was after we removed a good chunk of the submitted comments!”

Bass indicated his staffers limited time may be better used reporting the news rather than policing comment boards: “As a low-budget news site dedicated to the high-quality reporting, maybe we need to focus our resources on what we do best: reporting and writing and illustrating stories.”

But he also acknowledged the contributions made by the sites regular, respectful, contributors:

“To the majority of readers who comment every day, we say: Thank you! You inspire us. ... I’ve always taken pride in how much more thoughtful, diverse, intelligent, and fun our comments section overall has been compared to those on most other news sites. … But without civility, without respect, a free forum turns into a soul-destroying free-for-all. A few people can foul that forum.”

I empathize with Bass, who created an independent newspaper to build and serve his community and then watched as others with no vested interest sought to destroy it. I’d compare it to an artist painting a mural in a park only to watch others show up with spray paint to leave their marks all over it.

Suspending comments hasn’t ended opinion, of course; in fact, it’s inspired it. Matt DeRienzo, editor of the New Haven Register, encouraged his rival to bring back comments, but acknowledged the difficulty in policing a moderated system:

“Here’s the hypothetical progression that we struggle with, and why so much is a gray area:

“Commenter 1: The mayor’s budget proposal is stupid.

“Commenter 2: Yes, you’d have to be a real moron to propose it.

“Commenter 3: Yah! The mayor is a moron!

“Commenter 4: No, you’re a moron!

“If you don’t know when the line is crossed in the above (and often, we struggle with that), pretty soon you have a toxic environment, even with a moderated comments system in place.”

DeRienzo’s example is a good one and shows even professional journalists struggle with knowing when to cut off the commentary. As we’ve seen locally over the past few weeks, those decisions are even harder when the heat behind a story goes up and the level of discourse goes down.

Unlike the Star-Exponent, which must serve corporate masters, Bass’s decision to suspend comments was easy because he owns the paper. But one unintended consequence of the blackout may be of interest to our local editors:

Bass reportedly told media commentator Dan Kennedy, “‘Those of us who wrestled with posting comments and some really abusive and relentless people all day and night are feeling much happier since the comments stopped. … Our moods have brightened. We are nicer people to be around.’”

Clement’s column runs every Monday. He lives in downtown Culpeper. Email jclements@gmail.com.